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Project Management Wiki:PROJECT SCOPE
PROJECT SCOPE ''' Description When we talk about '''Project Scope, we mean what the project includes what we are going to do and what we are not going to do. It is what we are going to deliver, and specify what is not going to be included as well; both contents and boundaries of the project. When using this tool, all scoping effort involves an interaction and collaboration between the client who is requesting a service or product and the project manager who is providing that service or product. Explanation of how to use the tool In order to scope a project, we can use what we call the Project Scoping Meeting. This consist basically on having a meeting, project managers and clients, in which they discuss what the project will include, and how they are going to do it. This meeting can be either formal or informal and it has two main purposes: the first one is to draw the Project Overview Statement. POS is a document, usually one page long, that concisely states what has to be done in the project, why it has to be done, and what business value it will provide to the enterprise when completed. The second one is to draft the requirements documents, which will be used later on as a further input to the POS, and to help the team decide the best management approach that best fit each specific kind of project. To this meeting, there are certain people who must attend. Besides the size of the project, a scoping meeting attended by between 15 and 20 people is large, but possible to work with. For small projects it can be much lower, and for big projects, it is better to consider even having more than one meeting, as it becomes much easier to work with. In any case, the following groups have to be represented at the Scoping Meeting: *· The client group, especially decision makers and operations level staff should be represented. It is a good idea that the person who proposed the project goes to the Meeting too. *· The core manager and core members of the project team including, apart from the project manager, people who will be in the project from the beginning to the end, also scarce and skilled professionals whose role is important in the development of the project. *· There might be a facilitator group, just one or two people who are experienced in conducting scoping and planning meeting, that intervene in the meeting. There will be a technographer, who will be recording all the meeting. The agenda of the Scope Meeting usually includes: *· Introduction *· The purpose of the meeting *· Review of the conditions of satisfaction, if it has been done earlier *· A description of the current state, followed by a description of the problem or business opportunity that has arisen and a description of the end of the state *· A discussion of the gap between the current state and the end states *· A best-fit choice for the project (in order to approach and close the gap between those current situations) *· An approved draft for the POS, which will have to be done by the whole group *· An adjourn Depending on how big or small projects are, this agenda can be accomplished in one day, or in a few weeks. The deliverables needed for the Scoping method are four: *· COS (Conditions of satisfaction, a structured conversation between the client and the likely project management) *· Requirements documents *· Best-fit project management life cycle (PLMC) *· Project Overview Statement Evaluation of benefits/limitations of using the tools The main benefit that Scope Meeting has is that it puts project team and clients closer. Many projects failure come from a lack of direction and a misunderstanding of what needs to be done, and having a meeting in which parts involved decide what they are going to do is really helpful and make things clear. However, change in projects is constant, and scope creep might be a limitation at this point. Discussion of when it is applicable and justification This is applicable at the beginning of the project, in the initiation process, and it can be used in any kind of project. It is also known that projects are very likely to change all over the process, from the beginning to the end. Bearing the scope of the project in mind can help us to keep the project on its path in spite of changes that can occur. Whenever we have to modify the project and adapt it to new circumstances, we can not forget what does our project include and what does not, and it has to be clear for the project team and for the client.